Brian Cox Reveals He Lives In 'Constant Fear Of Becoming Poor Again'

"Succession" star Brian Cox recently admitted that despite his blooming success, he still lived in fear of becoming poor again due to his impoverished past. The famous actor earned a Golden Globe award two years ago for his performance in the hit drama series, "Succession."

Per his own admission, Cox is currently the most famous he has ever been since he started his decade-long career. Besides "Succession," the actor has acted in films like "Troy," "Braveheart," "Man Hunter," "Red," "The Bourne Identity," and several others.

Despite his successful career and being at the peak of said success, Cox revealed that his impoverished childhood made things hard for him. He reportedly grew up in a poor environment, and as such, the actor admitted that he lived every day, fearing that he could fall back into poverty.

Keep on reading to learn more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oF-5ZGt__jU

Cox is currently fronting a new documentary focused on the complicated relationship between wealth and money in society. The series, dubbed "How The Other Half Live," will be split into three parts and start airing on Thursday. Cox will cross-examine the increasing wealth gap worldwide, especially in places like the United States and the U.K.

Cox's investigation turned inwards, and he looked back on himself at eight at his Dundee home. The actor revealed that his father's early death from pancreatic cancer was the catalyst that plunged the entire family into poverty.

In the series, the "Troy" actor will visit the home of the upper class as well as that of the lower. The filming includes clips from soup kitchens and food banks, which show how much the cost of living crisis has pushed several million people into poverty.

Via Mirror, Cox revealed that his memories of living with so little have made him uncomfortable with money. The actor said that he is constantly afraid of reverting to his poor status.

The Scottish actor recalled a point in his childhood when he saw his mother, which at one point saw his mother make use of her last £10, a memory that "hangs over him throughout his entire life." Cox said, "I still have a fear that it's all going to be taken away, and I'll end up in poverty again. It never leaves you."

"It's like the Damoclean sword that hangs over you throughout your entire life," the actor continued. "I never really felt it much when I was young; I was a kid and just got on with it; I was literally surviving. But as I got older, I'd look at that boy and think, my God, he survived; how did he do it? And it's still a mystery to me."

Cox further shared that he saw money as his "own personal demon" and that after his father passed, his family turned destitute. The actor explained that his mother had a widow's pension to lean on, and even that ran out before the end of the week.

"So I'd go to the fish and chip shop and ask if they had any scraps - the bits of batter at the bottom of the fryer - and take them home for us to eat," Cox continued. "I had a very happy life until my dad died. He would stand me up on the coal bunker and had me doing Al Jolson impersonations. It was my first stage."

The actor described his deceased father as "very sweet and kind and a real socialist." He recalled a time an aged man walked up to him and talked about his father, describing him as a very "kind" and "caring" person. "I just thought, that's such a wonderful legacy he left," Cox said.

Cox revealed that he thought of money as "the tragedy of the world" and felt like wealth within the 1 percent was becoming even more concentrated while the rest of the world suffered.

"When you play one of the richest men in the world, you live that life for nine months of the year where you're in a kind of cocoon, and I feel there's an inequity that needs to be dealt with," the actor said per Mail Online. "So this series comes very much from what I grew up with and what I saw, having been lower middle class and having a relatively happy childhood until my father passed away."

"Many people don't have the means by which they can achieve any kind of standard of living for themselves. Money is the tragedy of the world," Cox added.